


The War for Mementos

by BoBoK



Series: Sparks [1]
Category: Persona 5
Genre: F/M, Gen, definitely berserk inspired, okay sorta berserk
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-23
Updated: 2019-11-29
Packaged: 2020-07-12 00:37:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 19,538
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19937152
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BoBoK/pseuds/BoBoK
Summary: Makoto Niijima is the proud general of Kaithage's royal military, where her fighting prowess and gift for knowledge has earned her the title. She now leads a frontal assault on the Doldrians in hopes to crush them and take their capital.Ren Amamiya is a lone sellsword who has been hired by the Kaithaginian Kingdom to aid the royal military in their offensive into the Doldrian Empire, in hopes, to end the twenty-years war that has ravaged the continent of Mementos.





	1. A World At War

**Author's Note:**

> Hi all! 
> 
> I wanted to preface this by saying that I know that this is VASTLY different from the typical shumako fic we receive, but I finally decided to get to work on what I could consider "the big one" since it is my favorite genre and it is _heavily_ inspired by one of my favorite mangas of all time, Berserk. 
> 
> Since it is vastly different, I want to preface this by saying that none of the events that happen in P5 are present in this story. All names and titles of places in ( _ex:_ the continent of Mementos) are simply references to keep it connected to P5 in a way! 
> 
> I am going to have an extremely great time writing this series and I already have so many ideas to implement, so I hope you all enjoy dark medieval fantasy as I do since that is what this will mostly be based around.
> 
> **One last thing and this is a huge disclaimer: There will be very hateable characters in this story, as in, they may have very prejudiced views on sexes and I want you all to know, I do not have any relation nor do I believe in these ideologies, it is just to add a level of 'reality' to the story (which I know, this is a fanfiction and you all probably want the opposite of reality) but I just wanted to get that out there!**
> 
> I hope you all enjoy reading Sparks :)

“Nock!” 

“Draw!” 

“Release!” 

She ordered, pointing with a decorated rapier towards the charging cavalry that was barreling towards the high walls of the fortress. The cavalry began to grow closer, as a larger group of footsoldiers followed in pursuit, large siege towers beginning to come into view through the kicked up dust. She huffed out and turned, racing down the stairs to reach the ground forces that prepared their defenses, all lining up in formation with the shield and spearmen taking up the front lines, crossbow archers standing in the far back lines, along with the typical footmen who carried simple broadswords.

She swung herself up and onto her horse, riding into the middle of the small force that was now fully prepared for whatever force was to come. 

“General Niijima!” Cried out one of the foot soldiers who had recently come down from atop the wall. “The Doldrians’ siege towers have been pushed back! We only have the ground troops to take care of!” 

She turned and gave him a firm nod. “Keep the archers steady in their volleys, I will handle the troops down here.” 

There was a loud and sudden crash, the large wooden gate beginning to give way. Makoto looked at all of her troops beside her, their armor decorated in a dark blue with lighter blue lining, each helmet garnished with a large white feather which displayed that they were the royal force, the highest and prestigious, not to mention skilled, soldiers in all of the kingdom of Kaithage. And Makoto Niijima, who was only seventeen years of age, led that specific force.

Another loud crash brought Makoto’s attention back to the door as she stared at it, tugging down the protective metal visor over her face, covering her whole face except for the small slits in the iron so she could see. 

The final crash of the siege engine smashing against the door was shortly followed by the two doors bursting open, a large horde of men storming into the castle, which she wanted. As soon as she majority of the Doldrian force burst through the gates, she signaled to the men who were on the wall above the gate, waving her hand, making a circular motion before clenching her hand into a tight fist, the man atop immediately turning around and blowing into a large horn, the loud sound ringing over the chaos of the battle. She smirked as the rest of the enemy soldiers pushed into the castle. “Keep your retreat steady! Do not falter!” She barked at the spearmen who took the front lines, slowly as the began to back up, meanwhile, the men on the sides of their line held their ground, beginning to make a ‘U’ shape as the Doldrian forces kept shoving up the middle. 

Makoto grinned beneath the helmet and raised her rapier in the air, pointing it directly at the enemy forces who were now practically encircled, her Kaithaginian troops on the flanks now collapsing inwards on the Doldrian troops who were much too late to discover they had been encircled. And just like that, her cavalry force was now blockading the gateway, completely trapping the enemy force within the walls of Fort Mona. 

The battle had very rapidly been brought to an end, the last remaining Doldrian troops who surrendered their arms were immediately imprisoned and were to be brought to the capital, where they would most likely be given the option of death or fighting as a slave knight, which was also a death sentence since they were used as cannon fodder. 

Makoto had quickly gotten to work on the ‘paperwork’ of their battle, taking up the total number of her men injured, how many were killed in action, the current state of their defenses, the typical informative numbers that always came after battles. However, it was proven through those numbers that her leadership was effective. They typically lost less than ten men during their defenses, they seemed to always prevail, even when facing a force three times larger than theirs. Home-field advantage seemed to always allow Makoto’s tactics to work like a charm, which was why she rose so quickly through the ranks of the military. Getting in was hard enough on its own since she was a woman, however, her fighting prowess and her superior mind for strategy earned her a place in the military. Her reputation grew just as fast as her rank, it had gotten to the point that men were flirting with her every hour of every day, that is until she began to break every single one of their noses. The flirting fad quickly died after, much to Makoto’s liking. 

She walked into her quarters, flipping the visor up as she unbuckled the strap beneath her chin, slipping the helmet off and setting it on the table, where she immediately noticed a note with a seal from the king himself. She cocked an eyebrow as she grabbed the rolled piece of paper, slipping the seal off of it before she unrolled it, her eyes tracing quickly over the words that were written. 

Makoto sulked as she looked aside, tossing the paper back down onto the table. She let out a frustrated sigh as she ran a hand through her hair, heading towards her sleeping quarters, which was conveniently connected to her general’s quarters. As soon as she entered, she got to work on her left gauntlet, which covered her entire forearm and extended across her knuckles, which allowed some extra armor for her knuckles when she had to get her hands dirty in their fights. She slipped it off, setting it on the bed, then immediately getting to work on her breastplate, undoing the strings and straps, setting the well decorated and engraved chest-piece on the bed beside the gauntlet, she undid her other gauntlet, which stopped at her wrist since she never needed any hand protection on her sword hand, she had her rapier for that. She bent down and began to undo her thigh and shin armor. She let out a satisfied hum as she finished stripping the armor off of her, changing into much more comfortable clothes compared to the padded clothes she wore underneath the armor. She changed out of the lighter armor and slipped into much more plain attire. 

Makoto returned to her desk, opening the letter with a pained expression as she continued to read where she left off. 

_‘General Niijima,_

_It has come to our attention that the royal force has been proving itself especially useful in your defense of Fort Mona, however, we are going to be moving your army on to the front lines to help our offensive. Since your force is much smaller than the rest of the armies in Kaithage, you and your army will be accompanied by a man from our very own kings guard and two sellswords, Kai Sugimoto, Ryuji Sakamoto, and Ren Amamiya. While it may not appear to be in great in numbers, they each account for three men in terms of skill in combat._  
Your forces shall move by tomorrow.

_May God be with you._

_~ Master of War, Goro Akechi’_

She groaned and clenched her hand into a fist, pounding it on the table as she stood up, huffing a loud sigh. “Not only are my men now going to be thrown into the offensive where they will be slaughtered by the hundreds every single planned attack on a fortress, but they sent some kings guard and two mercenaries?” She could’ve ranted on for hours about how much she disliked mercenaries. They had always seemed so wrong in every single way to her; they were cruel, had no morales, were stone-cold killers, and actually enjoyed the feeling of battle rather than winning, the mercenaries could care less of who won the war, they only cared about money - and that was what irked Makoto the most. She growled shaking her head, not even bothering herself with the questions as to why she was to have a kings guard join her.

“Could this day get any worse?” She muttered, about to head to her room until there was a knock on the door. She turned her head and quickly twisted around, opening the door to see a man with a pair of friendly blue eyes with dark navy-blue hair that swept across his forehead. 

“Lieutenant Kitagawa? What is it?” 

The man turned his torso subtly to the direction he came from, pointing towards the gate that was just off in the distance. “There so happens three men outside the gate, two of them appear to be mercenaries while one of them also happens to be wearing the armor of the Kaithaginian king's guard.” 

She frowned and sighed, nodding to him. “Thank you, I’ll be there immediately, let them in but keep them in the courtyard.” 

Yusuke nodded and turned around, walking down the wooden steps to the men in the courtyard, signaling with his hand to open the gates. 

She shut the door and turned around, huffing out a sigh as she got back into her armor, fitting it snug against herself before she went out to greet the three men. After all, good first impressions tended to make earning respect much easier.

== 

Ren huffed out a sigh as he looked over to the other mercenary beside him, who he had become well accompanied with during their trip to Fort Mona. The man’s name was Ryuji Sakamoto, who had come from further down south, where it was much hotter, which the man had made clear in his explanation of his homeland, the young man carried a large iron club over his back, whether it was meant to be held two-handed or one-handed was a mystery. Ren turned to the other side, looking down to see the shorter king's guard man, who he had also learned about during their trip. The man’s name was Kai Sugimoto and he constantly complained about how he was sent only because he was the newest recruit to the king's guard, not to mention his consistent cough that occurred shortly after every time he talked, which must’ve either been due to sickness or just the natural guttural tone of his voice was taking a toll on his throat. Either way, he could care less. 

Ren averted his gaze to the large double gate in front of them, staring at the fresh battering ram marks on the center of the door, hell, they had to walk through a sea of bodies just to get here, which was a good sign to him - these guys knew how to fight. 

Soon, he saw the gates open, a large group of men encircling the courtyard. He stepped forward, walking into the courtyard, staring around at all the men as they held their spears pointed directly at them. Soon, Ren saw both Sugimoto and Sakamoto join beside him, the two of them showing the same lax posture as him. 

“‘Ey! Do any of you know where General Niijima is?” Ryuji called out, crossing his arms as his shoulders slouched, his head darting from left to right. 

No response.

His eyes darted the smaller armored figure beginning to descend from the steps and if his armor said anything to him, that was their general.

He watched him walk through the sea of men, the mask covering his face still. Ren’s eyes narrowed as he stared at the general who now stood before the three of them, noticing his smaller physique and shorter stature, he must’ve been one hell of a fighter to be that high-ranking with that size. 

“Ren, Ryuji, and Ser Sugimoto.” The General said, keeping their form stiff and proper.

Ren was quickly shocked to hear the voice come from beneath the helmet, his eyes narrowing from underneath the mask he wore. _‘A woman was leading the royal force the entire time?’_ Needless to say, Ren was very impressed. 

The three men stood in silence, Ryuji turning to the other two, shrugging. “I guess I’m the one who has to talk, huh?” 

Sugimoto scoffed, “General Niijima doesn’t need to speak with a king's guard, she already knows the kingdom has my sword. She doesn’t know that about you two.” He said with a grin, walking off with a cough to join the soldiers who had now at eased after their General made contact with the three. “Now, let’s celebrate a victory for Kaithage! Let’s get some ale!” He cried out cheerfully, heading to what appeared to be the mess hall with his arms around a few men, a large group following shortly behind them. 

Ren’s eyes immediately scouted out the few remaining soldiers who remained in the courtyard, the tension in his body easing as he no longer had fifty spears pointed directly at him. 

Ryuji huffed out a sigh, looking back at the woman who stood in front of him. “It’s kinda hard to hear you under that visor, can you take it off? It’s not like you got anyone to impress with all that armor.” 

Makoto’s cheeks grew slightly red underneath the helmet, which only reinforced her motive to keep the visor on. “I know that very well! I just prefer not to is all!” She grumbled out, looking over at the oddly dressed man who stood beside Ryuji Sakamoto. He must’ve been Ren Amamiya. 

She quickly noticed the man’s bizarre armor. It certainly wasn’t from this continent since she had only ever seen it in books. He must’ve been from the eastern continent Tok-Yoi, which was where her father and mother were from before they moved to the continent of Mementos, where she was born. She was quickly getting off track and continued to analyze his armor, noticing how it looked almost identical to the old samurai armor that appeared in her books. Then, she noticed how lightly armored he appeared, her eyebrows raised and she quickly remembered. ‘Shinobi.’ The word raced through her head. That was what his attire appeared to be, he was wearing all black cloth with what looked like crimson tinted metal plating beneath. She noticed the bizarre mask he was wearing, the fact that it only covered his neck and lower half of his face gave away that it was a menpo. It was all black with a small dragon painted in dark crimson on the cheek. Makoto quickly noticed his somehow captivating grey eyes that were tucked away beneath his semi-closed eyelids. She then noticed his black hair was tied back tightly into a small ponytail, a few of his locks falling across his forehead, giving it a very messy style. The final thing Makoto noticed was the bizarrely large sword on his back. She saw it’s slim blade’s curve and immediately recognized that it must’ve been an uchigatana, however, it’s size contradicted that statement. She remembered that it was a Ōdachi, which baffled her even more. 

Her eyes averted to the blonde man, noticing his much bulkier and more typical western-styled armor. It was all black and covering all of the heavy platings that completely covered his body from neck to toe, was a large golden-colored cloak, which matched his hair perfectly. Whether that was intentional or not wasn’t of her concern. She noticed his large steel club over his back, which showed her what type of fighting he was capable and Akechi wasn’t wrong about these two being able to take three men on at once, especially considering their weapons of choice. She took one final glance at Ryuji, noticing his painted black half-skull mask that was in front of his face, and whether that was a real human skull or not, wasn’t of her concern, either. These two seemed useful. 

“You two will sleep in the same quarters as everyone else.” She said, pointing to the stone building just beside the mess hall, where loud hollers and shouts were heard. “We march tomorrow to the front lines, which will take approximately three moons.” 

Ren nodded, turning as he went immediately for the stairs leading up to the castle wall, climbing up them to finally escape everything. He hopped up onto the embrasure of the wall, unsheathing his sword and resting it against the merlon, sitting down beside it as he looked at the bodies that lay piled beneath the wall.

Ryuji took a look at Ren atop the wall and rubbed the back of his neck, looking back to see the general was already walking towards the staircase. “If you try to talk to him, just know he ain’t exactly one for talking!” 

Makoto ignored him and continued her path, walking straight for the stairs, heading up the steps and walking across the walkway until she finally reached him, standing just in his peripheral vision.

Ryuji huffed out a sigh and shook his head, pushing his mask up past his forehead and on top of his head, immediately heading towards the mess hall to go join in on what sounded like a good time.

Ren noticed the woman standing, however, he didn’t bother on speaking. Not until she stood there for five minutes straight, simply staring at him. “You do know that staring at me isn’t going to make me leave.” 

Makoto raised a brow as her head recoiled back. Did he know she hated mercenaries? What gave it away to him!? She was trying her hardest to be as respectful as possible towards him, but it seemed that her properness wasn’t as good as she thought. “I don’t know what you mean.” She said, her stiff posture beginning to relax since she had already half-given up on her act of pretending to like sellswords. 

“I know you’d rather your army didn’t have two mercenaries in it.” He sighed, turning to face her. “It stains your precious honor and morality that you nobles all hold so dear.” 

She sulked and shook her head, pushing up the visor as she climbed up beside him, taking a seat on the merlon, beginning to undo the buckle of her helmet, setting it down beside her. “Actually, I wanted to ask you something.” 

Ren’s eyebrow raised as his interest was certainly piqued to see that this general didn’t immediately snap at his rather negative outlook on her kind. “What is it?” 

“Do you come from Tok-Yoi?” She asked, her eyes narrowing. 

He turned his head back to face the exterior of the fortress, giving no answer to her question.

Makoto’s eyes narrowed further and she stared at him, anger beginning to rise in her as he sat there, ignoring her. She clenched her teeth and held her fiery stare on him. “Are you going to answer?” 

No response, not even a single movement came from him as he continued to stare off into the now setting sun on the horizon. 

She huffed out a sigh and stood back up, grabbing her helmet with a quiet ‘hmph’ as she turned, hopping down from the embrasure and walking back down the stairs, returning to the courtyard. She made for the mess hall, entering it to see the majority of her men all drinking and chatting, however, it was quickly hushed with her presence as the men all gave her a stare. It was that damn collective stare, it always made her feel so alien to them. But that wasn’t what mattered, all that mattered was that they did their duty. “We move tomorrow morning to join the frontal offensive team. Don’t get too drunk, please.” She said loudly, turning around and exiting the hall, heading towards her quarters. 

Ren watched on as she exited the mess hall, recognizing how she hung her head while she scuttled back to her quarters, a slight smile cracking beneath his mask. _‘Maybe she isn’t the typical noble.’_


	2. Ambush

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Kaithagian Royal Force is ambushed during their march towards the front lines
> 
> Makoto also learns some of Ren's roots.

As the rays of light shot through the windows into her quarters, her eyes fluttered open, immediately hissing as the rays flew directly into her eyes. She swung her legs out of the bed and stood up, grabbing her under armor and slipping it over her body, adjusting it so the pads protected the weak points her plate armor could not, speaking of which, she slipped her armor on her body, tightening the straps. 

Makoto huffed out a sigh as she grabbed her helmet, slipping it on her head, grabbing her sheath and wrapping the belt around her waist, walking out of her quarters. As she trotted down the steps she could hear distant grunts and yells, her walking beginning to pick up in pace as she approached the sounds that grew louder. 

She found herself walking behind the mess hall to see the mercenary in all black with a large and thin sword spinning, flipping, and swinging around him within a small circle of tall trees. At first, it looked like his movements were uncontrolled, however, as she watched, she could see his moves were elegant and graceful, it felt to her like she was watching a piece of artwork being painted before her very eyes. Suddenly, her trance was broken as the man stood straight up, sheathing his sword over his back.

“Are we moving?” Ren asked, turning to face Makoto.

She shook her head. “No. Not for another half an hour.” 

He hummed, walking over to the trunk of a tree, leaning against it, standing for a few moments in silence. “You’re not very well-liked around here, are you?” Ren asked softly, turning his head to face her, the menpo still covering half of his face.

Makoto felt immediately insulted, her inner fighting spirit wanting to come out and defend herself, however, the tone of his voice contradicted her belief. He wasn’t insulting her, instead, he was making a careful and calculated assumption. Her tension soon eased as her shoulders slumped as she joined him, leaning on her hands against another tree nearby. “It’s not that I’m not liked. I think they just see me as nothing but a general.” 

Ren’s eyebrow raised as he looked at her oddly. “And that is supposed to mean..?” 

“It’s like I’m not a common soldier like them.” She explained with a shrug. “It’s difficult to articulate what exactly I think they feel about me, but I think you get it.” 

Ren hummed quietly, nodding. “I know it all too well.” 

Makoto tilted her head, “How would you know?” She asked, the rude tone in her voice immediately making her regret saying anything at all. “T-That came out much more hostile than I intended.” 

Ren grinned and shook his head. “How many times have you labeled a sellsword as heartless, honorless, and bloodthirsty?” 

Makoto looked at him in shock, but before she could say anything to defend herself, he continued.

“I don’t mean to antagonize you. I’m just saying that every single soldier in Mementos feels the same way you do. Now just try to imagine what it is like for that mercenary who has to deal with that every day of his life.” He said, removing his arms from their crossed position as he adjusted his mask, his arms returning to their crossed position. 

She sighed and nodded. “Yes. You’re right, though. Every mercenary I’ve met has come off as cold, thoughtless, and selfish. But you, you seem different.” 

“Now don’t get the wrong idea and differ me from all other mercenaries, I can’t say that I am completely innocent of your generalized accusations.” 

She looked at him with an intrigued stare, _‘No… He’s definitely different.’_ Her mind finally concluded upon that thought. He was different, regardless of how much he’d argue it. 

“You know, us mercenaries have generalizations for you nobles, too.”

“You do?” 

Ren nodded. “At least I do, anyway.” 

“What are they?” She pushed, hoping to hear what thoughts he had on people like her.

“Nobles are nothing but greedy dirtbags who want nothing more than more land and more people's corpses in the fields so they have more food and drinks to themselves. That and they are always goody-two-shoes just to earn themselves a promotion.” 

Makoto frowned and her eyes narrowed. “Oh.”

He laughed softly, “But like you said about me, you seem different.” 

Makoto closed her eyes as a smile crept across her face while she let out a satisfied hum. 

“For the most part, at least.” 

Her eyes opened and she looked at him, her lower lip pushed out as she began her pouting. “What do you mean by that?” 

Ren looked over and saw what he never thought he’d see, a general pouting, which sparked another laugh out of him. “I’m only messing with you.” 

Makoto sulked and her eyes avoided his soft stare. “Dick.” She mumbled under her breath, and in an instant, she saw his figure dart towards her. 

He now had his hands on her shoulders, his face dangerously close to her’s, their noses almost touching. “Mind repeating that, General Niijima?” 

Her eyes widened at his sudden closeness, the smug look on his face and his grey iris’ captivating all of her attention and thought-process. “I-I said you were a dick for saying I’m a greedy dirtbag!!” 

Ren pulled back, faking a shocked expression before he snickered. “Good. I don’t want you thinking I’m anything better than a rotten sellsword.” He said, his voice quickly turning into a tone of dead seriousness, which caught her off guard. “One last thing, try to fit in with the men more if you want that feeling to change.” He said as he quickly walked off, walking around the building to go to his usual spot on top of the wall.

Makoto tried to stop him before he left but quickly figured he’d want to have been left alone. She frowned and looked around, pushing herself off of the tree, walking back to the mess hall as she let out a long and tired sigh. _‘Who the hell is he?’_ Then another thought occurred to her. _‘Where in the hell is everyone? Did they all get blackout drunk?’_

She grumbled as she began to march towards the rest of the troops’ quarters, opening the door to see all the men gathered in a circle, standing around two men who were wrestling on the ground. She took a second look and saw that it was none other than Kai and Ryuji duking it out amidst the crowd. She was going to stop this foolish fight, but she remembered what Ren had told her about fitting in. Makoto approached the group, standing behind a few men as she watched the king’s guard and the sellsword going at each other. 

She sat idly by until one of the men beside her noticed her and quickly straightened his pose, crying out. “General Niijima, Ma’am!” 

As soon as her name was called out, the room fell silent and everyone went stiff as a board, even Ryuji and Kai stopped their fight and turned to look at Makoto, who was now in the open after most of the men beside her had stepped aside to give everyone a clear view of her. 

Her eyes widened slightly as she looked around at the men, why the hell was she having such a difficult time talking to them? Was fitting in so difficult all the time? She cleared her throat as she looked around, finally giving in and trying her best to ‘fit in’ amongst her men. “I-I didn’t say to stop the fight, I actually wanted to watch.” 

The men all exchanged a few stares with one another before they quickly began to root on the two men who were previously fighting, the circle closing around Makoto, where she was luckily in the front row to the whole scene. 

Soon after the fight had ended, it seemed that Ryuji ended up being the superior fighter against Kai, only because of his size. 

Sugimoto stood up, brushing himself off and giving Ryuji a firm smack on the back with a cheery grin before he walked off and joined the group, leaving Ryuji spinning in a circle, waving his arms out. “Who else wants to get their butt whooped?” He asked with a grin. 

Makoto saw all the men stand and stare, not a single one of them volunteering to ‘get their butt whooped.’ So Makoto stepped into the circle, shrugging. “I’ll give it a go.” 

Ryuji turned around as his eyes widened, he quickly began to hesitate. “A-Are you sure I should fight the general?” 

Makoto nodded, curling her fists into tight balls. “It may be a bit unfair since I’m wearing armor.” 

Ryuji sighed and rubbed the back of his neck before putting his dukes up, beginning to shuffle in a circle with Makoto tracing his exact steps. “I’ll find a way around it.”

Makoto nodded. “Don’t go easy on me just because I’m a woman, either. I’ll know if you do.” She said, her tone completely changing into something much more stern and fierce. 

Ryuji huffed out a sigh and shook his shoulders out. “Fine.” 

== 

Ren could hear loud cheers erupt from the living quarters, which certainly piqued his attention since he saw Makoto enter not five minutes prior. He jumped off onto the walkway and went down the stairs, heading for the rather noisy building. As he got closer he could hear chanting begin to erupt through the doors. 

_“Queen of the Hill!”_

_“Queen of the Hill!”_

_“Queen of the Hill!”_

He raised an eyebrow before finally making it into the doorway to see the circle surround both Makoto and Ryuji. He pushed past most of the men, making it to the front row, only to see Ryuji flat on his stomach, his arm held high up behind him, Makoto lying beside him with her elbow pressing on Ryuji’s shoulder, threatening to dislocate it. 

“I submit!” Ryuji finally admitted, sighing in relief as he felt his arm get released from her grasp. He groaned and rolled onto his back, seeing Makoto’s offered hand and taking it, standing up with a nod. “Talk about hardcore…” He mumbled, looking over at Makoto who was certainly having a hard time handling her victory and sudden popularity. 

She awkwardly held her hand up as most of the men gave her rough high-fives. She looked around in confusion for someone to save her from this torturous awkward praise line that was beginning to form. A look that Ren had noticed.

“Hey!” He screamed as loud as possible, immediately shutting all up of the chanting, causing the majority of them to jump due to his sudden volume. “Thank you.” He said, after finally achieving the quiet he needed. “While I’m glad you are all having a good time. We have a march to start, so you all better pack your things up.” 

One of the men scoffed, “Why would we take orders from a sellsword?” 

“No, he’s right.” Makoto finally said, putting her hand down as she began to head for the door. “We depart in twenty minutes.” She huffed out before exiting after Ren, who was already gone and out in the courtyard. She approached him, sighing in relief as she finally escaped the chaos. “Thanks for helping me out there.” 

“How did I help you?” He asked, turning his head so she was now in his peripheral vision.

“Didn’t you interrupt everyone so I didn’t have to stand there like an idiot..?” 

He snickered and shook his head. “No. I just hate when time is wasted. It’s my paycheck on the line.” And with that, he walked off once more, heading towards the gate. 

She frowned and mumbled to herself. “You really are like every other mercenary, aren’t you, Ren Amamiya?” Then, she remembered how he had told her to go and try and fit in and it felt really good to finally feel a part of the team she led. _‘That’s it! He just hates accepting the fact that he isn’t like every mercenary! That has to be it.’_ She thought to herself with a grin. _‘But then again, why would he even go through the trouble of that whole act? Why won’t he just say “No Problem” and move on with it? Wait- Why am I thinking so much about him? Why do I care if he’s from Tok-Yoi or not? No way… I can’t be interested in a guy like him!’_ Her face grew a dark red as she began to shake the thoughts from her head, flipping the visor over her face in hopes that no one would notice how much of a blushing mess their general had become. Why was he such a problem!? Curse this new mercenary. Now she wanted to end this war more than ever, even though she had only actively participated in it for four years, it felt like an eternity. 

**Two Days Later**

There was only one day left of marching, sure, they all had horses and wagons to carry their supplies, it was still tiring, and most of all boring. Makoto was at the front of the main force, riding slowly atop her all-black mare. She looked ahead to see Ren, who was on foot, walking and acting as a scout for the rest of the regiment. 

_‘Isn’t he tired? He’s been walking for these past two days?’_ She couldn’t help but feel concerned, why didn’t he even have a horse!? Makoto truly felt like she’d never wrap her head around that bizarre man who had always preferred to be alone, yet he always encouraged others to be social, he’d show acts of  
kindness but immediately declined any thanks and said it was for his gain. It was somewhat aggravating to her. She was able to completely demolish armies and massive forces at Fort Mona, but she couldn’t handle the motivations of a single man!? How infuriating! 

Suddenly, her thinking was interrupted when she saw him halt his slow pace. She watched his arm raise and grab his ōdachi, unsheathing it as he looked around, his head darting from left to right in the dense forest. He slowly began to backpedal, reaching within whispering distance of Makoto.

“Get your men ready for battle, but do it quietly. There will be an ambush about four-hundred meters from here.” He kept his voice low, his sword still held out. “I’ll act as a decoy, ready your cavalry, and stay about a hundred meters behind me.” 

Makoto immediately wanted to rebuttal, “Are you stupid?” She hissed, leaning over to get closer to his height. “I’m not letting you go up alone and walk straight into an ambush, we’ll send two wings of cavalrymen and they’ll be able to crush whatever infantry comes at them.” 

Ren growled in response. “It seems you only know how to play defense because you were too busy fighting over fort fucking pixie-land, where everything is sun and rainbows. Well, it isn’t out here, so I’d advise you to listen to the expert when it comes to being caught out like we currently are.”

Makoto wanted to retort but she couldn’t. He was right. She had no experience leading or commanding outside of defending that fortress. While it was a key strategic point, it still wasn’t as key to victory as a successful offensive was. She gritted her teeth and sat back up. “Fine.” She spun her horse around, riding past her large file of men, telling them of the new plan. 

As the plan was set in motion for a counter to this supposed ambush, she let Ren lead the way, his sword held at his side. She couldn’t lie to herself, it was once again that feeling of watching a painting come to life. Even though what was to happen in mere moments would consist of bloodshed and horror, the moments of calm before the storm certainly eased her. There was somewhat of a majestic feel to it all, seeing one man march onward into unbeatable odds was inspiring, maybe that was why he was so efficient, because morale was key in battle, and he certainly gives that morale. 

Her thoughts and admiration continued as they followed a fair distance behind him, that is until she saw his body jerk backward, his torso turning to reveal the crossbow bolt that had dug itself deep into his bicep. She almost bucked her horse into a full-on sprint, in hopes to reach him before another bolt struck him, but she stopped as she saw him turn around and shoot her a stare. Even with the distance between them, Makoto could see a spark ignite a raging inferno in Ren, a sudden look of determination in his eyes. 

She watched the few slow seconds of silence go by before chaos suddenly drowned out all of the peace. She froze as she watched three men burst out of the trees and rush Ren, she watched him sit there, unmoving while the attackers closed in, she quickly regathered her bearings and quickly turned around, lining up her men as best as possible on the narrow road, forming a small, thin, and long triangle shape. She turned back around to see that the three men that had ambushed Ren were cut to shreds. Her eyes widened at the sudden turn of odds and the outcome of the fight as a whole. 

Makoto grit her teeth as she could see that more men began to storm out of the bushes, rushing Ren. That’s when he gave what looked like a signal, he raised his sword high up in the air, the massive blade easily spottable by her. She unsheathed her rapier and stood in front of her new-formed cavalry position, “Squadron A, you take up the front and support the merc! Squadron B, you take the sides and protect us from all flanks possible, Squadron C, go on foot and move through the trees and brushes, do not go too far in, weed out the enemies, Squadron D, follow the other merc and Ser Sugimoto and cover our rear flank!” She called out to the crowds of men as they all reformed their position.

Makoto turned back around to see Ren, resuming his dance with the blade that he was doing back at Fort Mona, except now, people were trying to interfere. He was moving quickly, even whilst wielding such a long blade, she could see him spinning and parrying attacks that has begun to come from all sides. She needed to help. “Charge!” She cried out to her men, pointing forward with the rapier, using the heels of her boots to (unfortunately) spur her horse, breaking into a quick sprint, the ten men of her first squadron following behind her in tight formation. Soon, their lines slammed amongst the small platoon of men that had attempted to charge Ren. 

Finally, as the battle began to ease down to finishing off the last few Doldrian soldiers, Makoto began to ride back and forth, attempting to see if anyone was missing. She came across a few wounded foot soldiers, but she quickly noted that no one was missing. 

She rode back to the front, seeing Ren kneeling with his sword balanced against his shoulder while he reached around it, his hand digging at the bolt that embedded itself into his arm. He was finally able to rip it out, gritting his teeth in pain as he tossed it to the side, grabbing the handle of his sword to stand up as he began to continue his march, blood flowing down his bicep and to his forearm, tracing down his palm and flowing directly off his fingertips. He raised his Ōdachi, sheathing it before he was stopped by Makoto.

“Did you know you were going to be injured?” She asked, riding beside him, looking down at him as he walked.

“I’ll do anything to win.” He huffed out, turning to her, a part of his mask was broken off, it was on his left cheek where the small dragon was painted in, and she could see a black across his cheek, just beneath the gash that was across his face. 

As soon as she noticed the blood, she slowed to a stop, swinging her leg off of her horse as she dropped to her feet, walking around her mare and approaching Ren. “We’re stopping here. You’re wounded and I’m sure we have plenty more who are hurt.” She sighed, reaching out to grab his arm, but as soon as she made contact with him, his body flailed and he spun wildly, staring at her with a mix of rage and fear in his eyes.

“Don’t touch me!” He barked out before he spun back around and began walking once more. “I’ll handle my wounds myself.” He muttered, his straight path swerving as he turned into the forest, disappearing in the trees.

“Hey- Wait!” She called out, running after him before she completely lost sight of him. She sighed and shook her head. “We will leave tomorrow at sunrise!” She called out into the trees, hoping he’d hear. 

“General.” A man said from behind, coughing shortly afterward.

Makoto turned and lifted her face protection, looking at the king’s guard who now stood before her. “Ser Sugimoto?” 

“The men are exhausted, they were all hoping they could set up camp for the night.” He huffed out. “They insisted that I was to be the one to ask you that you can always come and join us all for drinks, especially after a victory as such today.”

Makoto nodded. “Yes. I had planned on us setting up camp tonight.” She said, watching Sugimoto nod and wander back. _‘Just try to fit in, huh?’_

== 

It had been a few hours since he had walked into the forest. Of course, he didn’t go too deep into the dense woods, he could still see the light of the campfires lighting up the bark of the trees. 

He mumbled to himself as he sat against a tree, wrapping a bandage around his bicep. “Stupid damn crossbowmen…” He muttered quietly, tying the knot, even though it was awkward having to use his hand and teeth. Once he finished the knot, he set his pack aside, slipping off his black cloak as he began to strip off his armor. 

== 

Makoto certainly grew curious about this new mercenary. Ever since that last time he told her to fit in, he hadn’t uttered a word to her. At least one that wasn’t a command. She needed to speak to him again, at least to apologize for grabbing his arm so suddenly. She walked into the woods, leaving her armor behind in her tent as she wandered, attempting to find him. 

Luckily (and conveniently), she did find him. She watched as he stripped out of his armor, his plain black tank top beneath was drenched in sweat and was completely dirty, a mixture of dried blood from countless battles, he was wearing a pair of matching plain black pants that were torn at his ankles, most likely due to wear and tear. Once more, Makoto found herself admiring the man who seemed to be the opposite of admirable. She saw him reach behind his head, undoing the tie that held his ponytail tight, his hair fluffing out into something she could’ve never expected, it looked surprisingly soft and it was insanely messy. She also watched him begin to undo the mask he had been wearing, she’d finally be able to see all of his face! _‘Wait- why am I excited about seeing this mercenary's face? Gah, why am I even watching him? I shouldn’t even care for him!’_

She wanted to sigh audibly but knew it would give away her position, so instead, she resumed her stare, watching him intently from behind a tree. She watched him fully slip the mask off, taking his cloak and using it to rub off the dry blood that had come from his earlier cut, which was still open, but it wasn’t gushing blood anymore, which was a good sign. But as soon as he removed the blood, it revealed a black scar across the side of his face. At least she thought it was a scar at first, but upon closer inspection, it looked more like he had been branded. Her eyes widened as she noticed the curled up dragon which was surrounded by a circle. It was a brand. 

“You wanted to know if I was from Tok-Yoi.” He suddenly said, not turning his head to face her as he let out a loud squeak. 

She stepped out from behind the tree. “I-I did.” She said with a quick nod. 

Ren sighed and scooted over to the side of his log, prompting the gesture for her to sit, which Makoto did. “Are you from Tok-Yoi?” She asked, her eyes locked on the brand on the side of his cheek.

Ren nodded. “Yeah, I am.” 

Makoto frowned and looked aside, before sparking up. “My father was from Tok-Yoi. He always insisted while I was younger that we would visit after the war had ended.” 

Ren nodded again. 

She cleared her throat, trying to suppress her clear excitement that she had finally gotten to meet someone that came from the same country of her family’s heritage. “How was Tok-Yoi?” 

Ren scoffed, grabbing the handle of his sword, sticking the end of the blade into the dirt while he let it rest beside him on the log. “I’m sure it was great if you were rich and well-liked.” He huffed out. “Which I was, but it just wasn’t good for me.” 

Makoto hummed and nodded, turning with a frown to look straight ahead, trying to find whatever he was staring at. She soon found herself entranced, staring at the flickering flame in the distance, watching its warm orange glow flicker across the trees and leaves. “How did you get that on your face?” She asked, still looking straight ahead at the glow.

He shrugged. “My dad gave it to me.” 

She turned to him wide-eyed. “If I’m not mistaken, but your father branded you?!” 

Ren nodded. “He also made me his slave, his servant, and his…” He never finished the statement, his body beginning to shake as he spoke. “Yeah- I’m sure you have no desire to hear this sob-story and I don’t need your pity, so I’m going to stop talking. It probably sounds pretty dumb, anyway.” He muttered, reaching down and grabbing his menpo, staring at it before it he turned it around and pulled it back across his face, turning to see Makoto’s face in complete shock.

Her shock quickly turned into a pained expression as she looked aside, “I sort of know how that feels, to have your family turn on you.” She sighed. “My sister is a high-standing noblewoman, but when I was accused of a crime I didn’t commit, she never stepped in for me and I was either be put to death or be forced to join the military. They must’ve thought I would’ve died just as fast.”

Ren nodded slowly. “You’re certainly not noble-like.” He said with a shrug. “Guess it’s why I took a liking to you.” 

Makoto’s eyes widened and she could feel that redness begin to plague her face. “L-Like me?” 

Ren nodded. “You and I are similar in a way. Neither of us really fit in.” 

Makoto frowned and nodded. “Speaking of which, why do you tell me to fit in with my men?” 

“Cause your life will feel a helluva lot easier if you have people you can trust and when your men trust you.” 

“How do you know?” She asked, tilting her head.

“Cause my life isn’t very easy because I can’t fit in and earn the trust of others.” He responded blandly, his voice returning to it’s rather boring and monotone state compared to its earlier more emotional tone.

“I feel like I could trust y-“ Suddenly she was cut off by a sudden burst of movements of Ren, she gulped as her eyes looked down to notice the blade of his sword was at her throat. 

“Don’t trust me. I’m just a sellsword who is being paid to make sure you and your royal army make it to the front lines without dying or getting lost.” He said coldly, his fluffy locks falling over his face, hiding whatever expression that was in his eyes. 

“R-Right.” She said, easing as his sword was brought down from her throat. Makoto huffed out a deep breath before taking another look at Ren as she stood up. “Well. I’m going to head back to my tent. Try to get rest, will you?” 

Ren just let out a quiet hum that dismissed her wish for him to rest. He knew the woods weren’t safe in the slightest, especially after word of the Doldrian ambush being crushed had reached their emperor Silat Tanishka. He’d wish for their heads, as he did with every single man of Kaithage. 

He huffed out a sigh and rubbed his eyes, taking a look at the engraving on the side of his blade, just before the hilt. 

_‘鬼神’ (Oni)_

It had been what all of the Doldrians called the fighters from the east, they were called Onis. It still never struck Ren as to why he was referred to as a demon among his enemies, but he never really bothered with it, he just liked the word and decided to use the fear that came with the name to his advantage. It was a win-win for him. 

He huffed out one final sigh before he stood up, reaching down and grabbed his armor, reequipping it all, he grabbed his cloak and threw it over himself, sheathing his sword over his back. He grabbed the small leather string and tied his hair back into the tight ponytail, which was half-meant to keep his hair out of his face during battle and the other half was because it made him look badass. He was always a showoff, after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all! Thank you for reading this latest chapter and if you're finding any particular interest in this series or have given it a second read (this chapter) then I thank you again, this is by far my favorite genre and I'm having a blast while writing it, while also struggling on trying to keep the characters not so OOC, it is a challenge but I haven't gone too far off the deep end, yet. 
> 
> Also, I really _really_ love to write the beauty in chaos, which I'm sure you could all see by how majestic I try to portray Ren, even though he's wielding a nodachi and he's duking it out in battle. It's just as the French writer Antoine de Saint-Exupery said, "Perfection is Achieved Not When There Is Nothing More to Add, But When There Is Nothing Left to Take Away," and I believe that is what really encompasses Ren's belief in life as a whole in this story. I'll be sure to touch up on it later in the story and there may be a direct reference to it, but I just really wanted to share this quote and how well (and unfortunately) it can apply to war and battle, where there is nothing to take away from war because it is simply life and death, which by Antoine's definition of perfection, war is perfection. It's a really dark thought. 
> 
> I'm super tired while posting this so I'm just rambling on about my interest in psychology and such, but thank you all for reading, I hope you are all enjoying the series and I do hope to provide more of it in the future. Thank you very much and it's from the very bottom of my heart. It really means a lot to me.


	3. A Warrior

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Makoto relives a nightmare and Ren explains what it is to a be a warrior

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **!!DISCLAIMER!! This chapter contains very sensitive and very VERY touchy subjects, (sexual violence, real violence, and post-traumatic stress disorder.) If you are sensitive to these topics, I recommend you do not read this chapter. If you do, I hope it's a good read.**

He huffed out a quiet sigh, walking through the dark and dreary forest. He could swear he was being watched, something felt off about the night. He turned and looked at the groups of tents, noticing many men passed out, lying down by their already dimming campfires, he also noticed that the candle in the General’s tent had also been snuffed out. 

He hugged his cloak closer to his body as he began to circle the very large camp that they had set up, the entire circumference of his patrol averaging around a mile and a half. He grumbled to himself as he came back on his second lap, noticing slight shuffling in the bushes, just beside the general’s tent. His eyes narrowed as he sunk into a sneaking position, cautiously walking towards the movement.

== 

“General Niijima!” A man cried out, screaming at the top of his lungs. 

“What is it?!” She snapped back, averting her focus from the tide of the battle. 

“They’re attempting to break through the gate!” He cried once more, pointing to the much smaller side gate that was on the south side of the building.

Makoto turned and nodded. “Regiment C, on me!” She called out, around seventy or so men turning towards her and immediately following her without a word. 

She ran towards the south gate which was beginning to falter, however, the last thing she expected when that gate opened was to see a single man. 

Her eyes widened at the man’s size, he was standing at least seven feet tall, his body was a hulking mass of muscles, which were visible since he hardly wore any armor except for the leather tunic and typical underclothing. She noticed that he was carrying a massive blade, one that couldn’t have possibly been wielded by a man. She took closer note to the cruel hook at the end of the massive blade, completely bewildered by the sudden beast that had appeared before her. However, her doubts were swept away when her logistical ego kicked in. _‘It’s seventy-two against one, we cannot possibly lose this fight.’_

“It’s just one man, attack from all angles!” She ordered, staying a few lines back behind the men. As the men all collapsed on the monster of a man, he suddenly spun, the blade being used to help accelerate his rapid twist, and just before her eyes, she saw six of her men get sliced clean through their torso. Her eyes widened as their cleanly cut corpses flopped to the ground. She was at a complete loss of words, a loss of orders. _‘This can’t be possible…’_ She began to slowly backpedal. 

“General, what do we do?!” One of the men cried out.

“General!?” Another yell. 

“General Niijima!” 

She had no words. No orders. Nothing came out as she stared at the man, his red eyes locking with hers as he stared her down, licking his lips as he looked her body up and down. She shuddered at the sight, her legs began to tremble. _‘What… is this thing?’_

The following moments were of horror to Makoto. The man began his offensive on the confused and misguided men, swinging through groups of them as a few began to retreat and others attempted to fight back, only to meet a quick demise. She saw that monster of a man mow through her lines, barreling directly towards her. Her eyes widened as he finally came upon her, his massive stature towering over her. 

“Did you think hiding under a helmet would hide the fact that you’re a pretty little goody?” The man said, his voice dripping in a condescending lust as he stared her down. 

Makoto stared up at him, mortified as his hand began to creep towards her, that is until his arm was riddled with crossbow bolts. 

The man growled and turned, looking over at the direction of the arrows, noticing the large team of crossbowmen perched along the tower wall, a blue-haired man standing in front of them with his sword pointed at the man beneath. 

This monster must have quickly realized he wasn’t going to get his ‘goody’ without facing serious injuries or even death and he quickly retreated towards the gate, doing his best to avoid the shots from the men firing down at him. Makoto watched him reach the gate and climb atop his horse, racing off and back towards where the previous Doldrian forces had come from. She took a deep breath and exhaled shakily. _‘Who… What was that?’_ She thought before she looked down, seeing the corpses of nearly all seventy men sprawled across the courtyard. 

She took a few steps, analyzing each body, taking a mental note of their names and ranks. Under her visor, she held a pain-stricken expression. _‘These men died… because I couldn’t give any orders.’_

She blinked a few times, seeing nothing but darkness surrounding her. Her eyes widened and she shot up, her eyes adjusting to see the interior of her tent. She sighed and fixed her shirt which had rolled up her torso, mumbling quietly to herself. “What the hell was that… _thing?”_

Makoto climbed to her feet, rubbing her eyes as she rolled her shoulders, grabbing the pitcher of water that was still set on the table, pouring herself a cup before she set out for the exit of the tent. She stopped at the slight sound of scuttling outside, setting the cup on the table and grabbing her rapier, unsheathing it as she finally broke into the opening, where she saw what appeared to be no one.

Suddenly, out of the corner of her eye, she saw the hulking mass of a man erupt from beside her tent, running directly towards her, the same massive hooked blade sheathed behind his back, his penetrating red eyes that were almost glowing, she froze at the sudden sight, the grip on her sword growing loose as she stared at him. 

The monster of a man slammed into her, tackling her onto the ground, a loud yelp coming from Makoto before his palm covered her mouth. Her fight or flight instincts cut in as she tried to wriggle free from underneath him, both of her legs pinned by his knees, his free hand grabbing onto Makoto’s wrist and pinning it to the ground, “If it isn’t the goody from two years past?” The man said, his breath reeking of alcohol and a vile stench of some sort of rotten meat. “I’ll be sure to treat you nicely.” He said, his greasy hair falling over his face as he used his weight to keep Makoto pinned.

She cracked at her words, using her one free arm to begin throwing punched wildly, screaming into his palm as loud as she possibly could, her main objective was to alert at least someone before this man did whatever he was planning on doing. 

“Tsk.” She heard a snicker from an outside voice, her eyes darting over to see the mercenary in all black, his coat completely covering his whole body. “You really thought the General wouldn’t have any guards around?” 

The man looked at Ren, noticing his small figure beneath the cloak. He looked back down at Makoto, who was entranced by the sudden appearance of the mercenary, who had tried to make it abundantly clear that she was meaningless to him. He huffed out a frustrated growl and stood up off of Makoto, unsheathing his sword as he began to slowly approach the sellsword. “I hate nothing more than when someone gets in the way of my pleasure-time.” He growled.

Ren held his hunched stature, keeping his full-body hidden underneath the cloak as he stared down the man, rage bubbling within him. 

Makoto had noticed that this mercenary wasn’t acting like his usual composed self, she could notice him slightly trembling, his eyes were narrowed and she swore she could feel the simple aura of his hatred that suddenly began to surround him. “Amamiya, look out!” She cried out as the man raised his blade, swinging it down directly towards Ren.

He spun out of the path of the blade, the man slamming his blade directly into a log, burying it deep within the wood. Ren growled and lifted his leg, kicking the man in the back of the knee, bringing the man down slightly, only for him to recover shortly after. “You’re slow and you lack technique.” 

The man growled in anger and ripped the blade out of the log, swinging it around him as he spun back to face Ren, however, the sellsword was too quick and ducked underneath the swing. 

“You lack finesse.” He continued, slamming his open palm into the back of the man’s elbow, very subtly hyperextending it, just enough to bring pain, but not enough to break it.

The man grunted from the quick blow and in frustration as he couldn’t seem to catch this little demon. “Shut up!” He lashed out, swinging his sword down in a diagonal manner, only for Ren to dodge the swing once more. 

“You think sword-fighting is some sort of battle of strength,” Ren growled, throwing another punch straight into the man’s jugular, stunning him for a few more seconds. “You’re a peasant who thinks he can just swing his sword around and rape anyone he wants.” He muttered.

“It’s because I can!” The man said, resorting to letting a punch fly instead, throwing it directly at Ren’s face.

Ren’s narrowed eyes widened as he shot forward, the punch being deflect off of his mask, he quickly closed the distance between the two, his knee running straight into the man’s groin, earning him a loud groan of pain. 

Makoto watched the bizarre fight, noticing how Ren hadn’t even drawn his blade yet, instead, he insisted on antagonizing the man. And Makoto was glad he was doing so, that asshole had it coming to him. 

“Women aren’t cut out to be warriors!” The man thrashed out, his swings becoming much more wild and random. “They’re just goodies for us warriors to take, can’t you agree!?” He growled, taking a few steps back to distance himself from Ren, who was now standing between him and that ‘goody’ of a General he desired so badly. 

A wave of anger coursed through Ren as his eyes narrowed once more, his hand slowly rising to grab the handle of his sword, unsheathing it. “The only thing you and I have in common is that we wield swords. If that dull piece of junk could even be considered a sword.” 

The man growled and sprinted forward at Ren, throwing an attack directly for Ren’s head, his blade smashing against the much more thin and sharp blade of the mercenary’s blade, visible confusion plastered across his face. _‘How did I not cut through this puny blade?’_

“Technique makes a warrior,” Ren growled, parrying the blade to the side his thrusting with his sword to slice across the man’s bicep. “Discipline makes a warrior, not gender.” He continued, waiting for the next attack, which he parried just as easily, using the curve of his blade to deflect the attack, allowing him to slice another thick chunk of muscle off of the man’s other bicep. “You’re not a warrior.” He stated, parrying the third attack, hooking the curve of his ōdachi into the hook of the man’s sword, using it to completely disarm him. Ren tossed the sword behind him, kicking the man back against the log he had previously stricken. Ren pointed the blade at the man’s throat. “You’re a coward.” 

Makoto recognized defeat when she saw it and this man’s face was as easy to read as a book. She was already able to recover from earlier, now sitting on her heels as she watched the fight, completely enchanted by Amamiya’s dance around the beast that he fought. However, she knew that killing him would prove to be unwise since they could very easily squeeze information out of the man. “Amamiya, sheathe your blade. It’s over.”

Ren turned and flashed her a stare, that same rage still boiling within it. Her eyes widened as she saw him turn back and mutter the man, “I hate nothing more than when someone gets in the way of my pleasure-time.” He muttered, swinging the blade at the man, completely slicing across his chest, blood beginning to pool out, the man crying out in pain.

Ren reached down and grabbed the man by his hair, talking to him in a quiet voice. “You won’t bleed out for another forty-eight-hours. I’m about to cut that time down to half and I hope you’re good at crawling because you’re going to be crawling all the way back to Doldrey.” He said, hooking his sword underneath the man’s ankle, slashing away the entire tendon. He then repeated the same wound on the other man’s leg. 

“And one final thing,” Ren said to the massive man who was writhing in agony, tears and snot dribbling down his face. “What is your name?”

”J-J-Junya… K-Kaneshiro!” Cried the man, who attempted to even speak normally. 

Ren stared down at him with widened eyes that held their resentful stare. “Kaneshiro… Would you like me to kill you?” 

Kaneshiro looked up at the mercenary, nodding. “Just end it! I’d be tortured if I go back, please kill me, make it painless!” 

“If you stop squirming around I’ll kill you, now quit moving.” He said, raising his blade, lining it up with his neck.

“Wait!” Makoto called out, but it was too late, the blade was already being brought down upon Kaneshiro, but her eyes widened as she saw that the blade didn’t strike where she originally thought, instead, she saw the tip of the blade dug into the dirt just in front of the man’s crotch, then fabric and something lying beside it. There were a few moments of silence before the man broke out crying and rolling around on the ground in pain as he felt where his genitals once were. 

“Y-You said you’d kill me!” Junya screamed in agony. 

Ren snickered as he cleaned the blood off of the flat edges of his blade using Kaneshiro’s sleeves, “You really think a piece of shit like you deserves the mercy of death?” He asked, rhetorically. “Now you better start crawling back to your homeland before you bleed out.” He muttered, sheathing his sword over his shoulder, looking down and noticing the man’s phallus resting on the ground in front of him, which nearly made him gag. he averted his stare towards Makoto to save himself from the disgusting sight to the much prettier General, who was staring at him with wide-eyes and her mouth agape. His position wavered slightly as he began to have flashbacks of his mother, where she had been pinned to the ground by men like Kaneshiro, he clenched his teeth and quickly broke into a sprint, wrapping his arms around the general, as he collapsed to his knees, holding tightly onto her like a scared child.

Makoto’s continued to grow as she was suddenly embraced by the mercenary, she raised her arms, unknowing of what to do with them, she simply draped her arms over his shoulders, holding a loose grip on him as he buried his half-covered face in her shoulder. 

She heard him mumble words into her shoulder, but they were way too muffled for her to understand what he was saying. “A-Amamiya?” 

Ren didn’t move, however, his heavy breathing was brought to a halt. There were a few moments of silence before he pulled himself back, beginning to back up like she was some terrifying monster. “Amamiya?” She repeated, “T-Thank-“ Before she could even finish her sentence, Ren turned on his heel and broke into a sprint the opposite direction. “... you.” She finished, sighing softly as she stood up, grabbing her sword as she fixed her shirt which had been stretched and tugged at by the man. She returned to her tent, keeping her sword in her hand as she grabbed her cup of water, taking a large drink. _‘What the hell was that? Why was he here? Why was R- Amamiya guarding me?’_ Part of her understood the cruelty of how Ren treated Kaneshiro, but another part of her wondered if he had taken it too far, flaying a man alive was a whole nother level of punishment. Then, she began to question even more as she took another drink of water. _‘And then that hug? What the hell got into him?’_ Then, she realized she returned said embrace. _‘Wait what the hell is wrong with me!? Why did I hug him back and not shove him off!?’_ Makoto continued her train of thoughts, thinking through the rest of the night and until the break of dawn. 

== 

Ren finally had run far enough to where he couldn’t see her tent, he collapsed onto his hands and knees, more visions coming to him. He took deep breaths, his hand fumbling at the knots that held his mask, undoing them and chucking his mask off to the side, beginning to vomit and sob. 

**DISCLAIMER: This segment contains extreme violence, sexual violence, and overall very rough topics, skip if you must to the next bolded segment, signaling the end of the segment.**  
== 

He was nine years old.

“Mama, what’s happening?!” He cried, looking up at his mother who was now hiding in the same closet as him. 

She turned to her, putting a finger to her lips, speaking in a frantic voice. “I-It’s going to be okay, Akira! Just keep your voice down.” She said, leaning over as she brought the little boy into a tight hug against her side. 

Screams.

There were countless screams of women and children.

Crackles.

It was hot and Ren could see through the cracks of the closet that outside of the window, flames danced and spiraled across buildings until the building was brought to a total collapse. 

Ren didn’t have any clue as to what was happening, but he was terrified. He could hear and see the shapes of men in the room he was in not five minutes prior. He watched through the thin slits the men begin to dig through their chests and storage crates, grabbing all of his mama’s jewelry and pretty rocks. Suddenly, a loud bang was heard as a man punched the wall in frustration, Ren letting out an audible cry in fear.

His mother quickly put her hand over his mouth as she began to look around frantically, until the closet door burst open and arms reached in and ripped the two of them out, throwing them to the floor. Both of the two crying and screaming as they were thrashed around.

Ren was tossed to his stomach and before he could stand up, a man stepped on his back, pinning him to the ground. Ren’s squirming stopped as he stared at his mother, noticing her recognize one of the men. 

“Hachiro!? What are you doing?!” She cried out as the two men grabbed her arms, pinning them to the ground. 

_‘Hachiro?’_ He thought, how did his mother know this man? 

This so-called Hachiro climbed on top of the woman, seizing her struggling as he put a blade to her throat, his free hand grabbing at her shirt, tearing it free from her.

Ren’s eyes began to water as he was forced to watch the rest of the scenario play out, watching each man take turns and laugh at the woman’s pain and despair. “Mama!” He screamed as she was beaten and violated. 

After a long and grueling hour, Ren looked at his bruised and violated mother lying unconscious, he was now the focus of the men’s attention. The man standing above him seemed to be the leader of the pack, his arms crossed over his chest as he stood with a smug smirk. Ren looked past the man at his mother, continuing to cry for his mother. “Ma! Mama! Please wake up!” He cried out.

The man squatted down, cupping Ren’s chin with bloody hands as he forced Ren to look his way. “You don’t even know who I am, do you?” 

Ren looked at the man, his brows furrowing as he spat, his saliva catching the man straight in the cheek. 

Hachiro growled and wiped off the spit with his hand and smacked Ren in the face with the back of his palm. “Stand him up! I’ll teach this boy proper respect for his father.” He muttered, walking over to the fire, grabbing the iron rod that was used to brand their cattle, sticking it into the fire pit.

Ren struggled against the two much stronger and burlier men who held both of his arms behind his back, their hands locked around his head to keep him from tilting his head or even turning it. _‘Father..?’_ Ren repeated, his eyes widening as the man returned to him, holding the rod in his hands, the end glowing orange, a spiraled dragon surrounded by a circle.

Ren screamed and struggled some more until he was completely held still by the two men. He hissed as the orange glow grew closer to his face until it touched. He screeched in pain as his body contorted and jerked side to side as the full branding iron was pushed against his cheek. Tears began to fall, which were immediately seared away as they touched the iron. It felt like an eternity before the man finally removed the iron from his cheek. 

“Get him back to the wagons,” Hachiro ordered, Ren being dragged off and out of the building.

== 

**\--END OF SEGMENT--**

“Amamiya?” He heard a voice from behind him, snapping him out of the flashback. He looked around, seeing as he had collapsed against the floor, a dried-up pool of vomit beside him. He groaned and rubbed his mouth off with his sleeve, looking up to see Makoto standing over him, orange rays beaming between the leaves of the trees. 

“Amamiya?” She repeated. 

He looked at her and hummed, signaling his attention.

“I just wanted to thank you for last night.” She simply said, “I don’t know what he would’ve done or what he was trying to accomplish with me… But it would’ve been rather unpleasant it seems, so thank you.”

He sighed as he ran his hand across the floor until he felt his mask, he grabbed it and put it over his face, tying it across. “I know what he was planning to do.” He muttered. “I can’t let it happen again.” He continued as he sat up.

“Do all men… act that way?” She asked, looking aside with narrowed eyes. 

“Every man is a monster.” He huffed out, standing up. 

“You’re not a monster.” She said firmly, thinking back to his words. _‘“You really thought the General wouldn’t have any guards around?”’_

Ren unsheathed his sword slowly, pointing it directly at Makoto’s throat, who unlike before, showed no emotion or paid attention to it, instead, she grabbed it with her hand and held it tightly. 

“What are you doing?” He asked, his head tilting in curiosity.

 _‘What the hell am I doing?’_ She asked herself the same question, her body beginning to move on its own. “You’re not a monster.” She stated again, pushing the blade aside, luckily her hand didn’t get sliced apart, but she couldn’t stop what happened next.

She pulled him into a tight hug.

Ren dropped his blade in surprise from the sudden embrace, enjoying her warmth and the feeling of her arms around his torso, until he had a vision from that same flashback. He quickly pulled himself away. “D-Don’t… Don’t touch me!” He yelped, his eyes avoiding her hurt gaze. 

“I-I’m sorry… You just looked like you need a hug.” 

He huffed out a sigh and bent down, picking up his sword. “C’ mon… I need to get you guys to the front lines alive and that won’t happen if we stay here and longer.” He mumbled, walking past her towards the main road where the rest of the men were camped at. _'I can’t let her get close to me or it’ll happen again… I can’t.’_

 _‘Why did I do that?!’_ She mentally bashed herself, clenching her hand into a fist. _‘That was so stupid of me!’_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And whew, there we have it, poor ole Ren-boy, having to live through terrible horrors as it is by now, expected of me to beat Ren up. I also am definitely taking my time while writing this because there are plenty of touchy subjects that will be included and I want to try and tackle them as cautiously and carefully as possible in hopes I don't offend anyone (though that may be impossible.) 
> 
> Anywho, as for Kaneshiro, I know y'all will want Makoto to kick his ass, and don't worry, you'll get your wish in the future. I don't intend on having Makoto freeze up every time she sees the big spooky beast-man named Kaneshiro.
> 
> Thank you for reading Sparks, it's going to be dark, grueling, and very angsty and sad or angering, so bear with me y'all as I try to tell some sort of story where terrible things happen to our very lovely crew.


	4. Fallen Ill

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The sellsword falls ill and faints, leaving the General to have to take care of him.

It had been three days since the encounter with Kaneshiro, Makoto couldn’t get it out of her mind. She nibbled on her lower lip just thinking about it as she looked ahead at the sellsword who was leading the caravan. They were in contested territory now, which meant that it was even more dangerous than their long walk through the forest. 

_‘Was he guarding me?’_ She thought to herself, pondering the thought as to why he even did so. The more she thought about him, the more she confused herself. _‘What is with him?!’_

She huffed out a frustrated sigh, which caught his attention as he turned his head, looking at her through the corner of his eye. 

He turned back around _‘Nevermind that, we can’t rest here…’_ Sure, he could walk for a long time, he was strong and had the stamina, but combining it with a sleepless night, a whole day without food, and not even a sip of water, it was taking a serious toll on his body. 

Makoto watched him unsheathe his sword, which immediately warranted her doing the same as she held the grip of her blade until she saw him hold out his hand, it turned out he was just using it as a support. _‘Are we beginning to slow down?’_ She had noticed their speed was beginning to decrease a few hundred meters back, but that was expected since he was walking so damn much, but even now he was appearing a bit off. 

_‘Just take deep breaths, keep…… going.’_ He thought to himself, putting more and more weight on his sword with every single step, his world began to darken as his vision began to grow hazy. He began to cough, the mask muffling most of the sounds coming out of him.

Makoto watched Kai ride up beside her, noticing the same thing Makoto was; the sellsword was not himself. “Think he’ll be alright?” He asked, turning his head slightly toward her.

Makoto shrugged and shook her head. “I have no idea…” She said in response, but she had some idea, he didn’t get a wink of sleep through the whole night. Wait, was he getting any sleep at all? He couldn’t have been guarding her at the perfect time and place for Kaneshiro. So that must’ve meant he was nearby for the few nights they spent hunkered down

She watched Ren take one last slower step before he stumbled and fell straight onto his stomach. Alarms firing off in Makoto’s mind immediately as she threw herself off of the horse, running towards him while Kai stopped the rest of the convoy.

She kneeled beside him and rolled him over onto his back, seeing how he was completely unconscious. She sighed in frustration, seeing how pale he was. She removed her glove and put her hand on his forehead, feeling his skin burning hot. “He’s sick.” She murmured to herself before taking a look at Kai, gesturing for him to join her.

As he came over, she put her glove back on. “Help me get him into one of the wagons.” She ordered, grabbing one of his arms and dipping her head underneath, Kai doing the same. They both lifted him up and dragged him past a few men, who Makoto could hear snickering.

_“Looks like the Sellsword couldn’t even march without blacking out.”_

_“What a weakling.”_

_“Don’t he look sick to you, fellas?”_

_“Now that you mention it, yeah he does.”_

_”Tch. A useless mercenary, great.”_

_“Talk about dead weight.”_

Soon they were out of range of the snickering, approaching a wagon that had enough space for him to lie down in, albeit, it wouldn’t be very comfortable being stuck in between a bunch of food boxes. Kai and she both stepped out of the back of the wagon and began heading for the front of the convoy once more, however, Makoto stopped at the three men who were sneering at Amamiya just before. “You three, you’re leading the convoy now.” 

One of the men looked shocked at his newly founded role. “What?! Why?!”

“Because our scout has fallen ill and you guys seemed more than capable to take such an easy task!” 

“But that means we’re the first to get attacked at if we’re ambushed!” The other retorted.

“Oh, I know that. And I’m sure he knew that as well but he didn’t complain when he was sent to do it. Alone, might I add.” She said, gesturing to the wagon Ren was lying in. 

The three men all exchanged a stare, all coming to a silent and mutual agreement that they couldn’t be bested by some sellsword who couldn’t march days at a time. “Fine.” One of them finally said, turning on his horse and riding toward the front, the other two following. 

Makoto walked towards her horse, catching up with Kai who was already mounted on his steed. “Ser Sugimoto, you lead, for now, I’ll check up on Amamiya.” She said, walking back to where Amamiya passed out, picking his sword up and walking back to the wagon, climbing in the back before they started moving again. 

She slipped off her helmet and rested it aside beside her. She sat at Ren’s feet since there was no room elsewhere and took out her flask, pouring water over a washcloth that she had grabbed out of one of the boxes. She then awkwardly positioned herself so each one of her knees was on either side of his legs, she leaned forward and wiped the sweat that had accumulated on his head off, then folding the washcloth and resting it on his forehead, just to try and keep him cool. She then got to work and pulled off his mask, setting it beside her helmet. 

As soon as she was about to pull back and finally get off of him, his eyes blinked open and he looked at her for a moment, perplexed by what was happening. “Wh-What happened?” He asked, still clearly a bit woozy. 

Makoto tried to avoid the fact that she was blushing furiously and put the lid of her flask to his lips. “Don’t talk, drink. You’re sick.” She said as stern as possible, watching as Ren obeyed and parted his lips while she tilted the water into his mouth. 

He gulped down a few drinks and let out a sigh, letting out a loud ‘Ahhh.’ He blinked a few times once more, recognition sparking in his eyes. “General Niijima, what are you doing…?” 

She frowned, there was no escaping this position now. Here she was, caught in the act of climbing on top of him, even if it was for medical care, knowing sellswords, he would think more of it- which would be completely false, she’d never do something so crude to a sick man! “You’re stuck under my flag, so you’re under my care.” She finally said.

He looked at her with a blank stare. “Oh… Okay.” He said simply, resting his head back on the hardwood. 

_‘Wait- that’s all? Just ‘Okay’?!’_ She screamed mentally, what and who the hell was this man and why was he so damn nonchalant? Or was she just overthinking it and it wasn’t a big deal? She froze for a moment, why wasn’t he shoving her off or fighting tooth and nail? He hated being touched, he probably still does, so why was he content with her sitting atop of him like this?! 

“Uhm… General Niijima?” He asked, raising an eyebrow, an amused grin accompanying it.

She squeaked loudly and finally climbed off of him, sitting beside his feet once more. She peeked around a box, “J-Just let me know if you need something… If you don’t need anything, then sleep.” 

He nodded. “Will do.” He mumbled as he shut his eyes, shuffling to find even a slight bit of comfort, he failed, but he was still able to pass out from just how tired he was.

Makoto watched him as he fell into his slumber, seeing how he curled his hand into a tight ball and held it with his other, resting it just beneath his chin, almost like some sort of cat. Maybe it was just because he was cramped up that he slept in that position, or he always looks like some sort of feline when he sleeps- Wait, why was she thinking so deep into all of this?! _‘Stop staring, Makoto!’_ She yelled at herself. 

She looked away and stared out of the small crack between the two cloth sheets that covered the cart, watching the dirt path slowly go by. 

She heard him shuffle and let out quiet hushed whimpers as he attempted to toss and turn underneath the covers. He even began to mutter a few phrases and names.

_“Hachiro!”_

That name was repeated countless times it felt like, every time seeming to convey different body language and emotion. She felt guilty forcing him to sleep like that but he needed the rest and she’d be damned if she let him die of a mere cold.

Again, she found herself questioning why his life was such a big deal to her, she couldn’t grasp it and she frowned at the thought of her developing a liking to him. _‘Only as allies… Nothing more, nothing less.’_ She thought to herself before looking at him, staring at his black hair tied tightly back into a small ponytail, some clumps poking out over his forehead. Even being a mercenary, even with his brand, even with his blàse attitude, and even with his stupid selfless strategies, Makoto certainly found him physically appealing. 

Especially his fighting, there was something so elegant yet chaotic to it. He maneuvered like a gentle stream that weaved its way through a densely populated forest, however, whenever he swung, the gentle stream turned into a violent flood of chaos and destruction, which typically left all opposition in bits and pieces. 

She practically gave up on disciplining herself to not think about him, seriously, ever since he showed up, everything had changed. She was no longer stationed at ‘fort fucking-pixie-land’ as he called it, she was going to the front lines to prove her prowess and tactical mind, she had begun to fit in with her troops (somewhat), and she had begun to actually like sellswords. Things seemed to be looking up for her, maybe she could even return back to the capital. 

She continued staring at him, analyzing his facial figures, his sharp jawline, straight black hair, somewhat accented jawbones. As she found her face heating up from staring, she finally came to terms with her newly founded attraction. _‘Acknowledging that I’m into him should be enough, right? He never needs to know that I… want him or anything,’_

And with that, she was content with the decision, deciding it’d be best to save personal emotions for after a war was fought. She yawned and shrugged her shoulders, pulling her knee up to her chest, resting the side of her head on her knee pad and watched over him as his sleep began to grow less chaotic and his sleep-talking stopped.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all, sorry for a pretty short chapter, I've been slammed with the whole "no writing" type writer's block. School also came around and I'm busy most of my days and I don't have much time in between to write very often (if I ever have the motivation to do so.) So, sorry for the very long delays in between chapters as well. 
> 
> That aside, thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoyed this short (but somewhat sweet) chapter, don't expect much sweetness to come, Mementos is a bitter and cruel country. (yes i know i'm evil)


	5. Cracks in the Sellsword

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Amamiya opens up to Commander Niijima about his haunting and cruel past.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **_DISCLAMIER: This chapter contains some pretty heavy stuff. (Sexual assault, abuse, and heavily implies violence). I'll put a big bold "WARNING" just before the story reaches that point, where there will be a big bold "SAFE" For when it's safe to resume back into reading. I just didn't want to offend anyone, but anywho, carry on with your reading and I thank you for reading Sparks!_ **

_**Thunk!** _

He groaned, sitting up as he began to rub his head, his hand running through his hair. He looked around as he began to feel the cart slow down. He grumbled, looking down to see his bare chest. ‘Wait- when did I take off my clothes?’ He turned and saw his clothes folded neatly in the corner. 

The cart slowly pulled up to a stop and he looked around, hearing chatter begin to arise in the soldiers. He saw the figure of someone through the fabric of the cabin’s cover walk past, carrying something in their hands. He watched the commander emerge into view. 

“O-Oh! You’re awake!” She said, her eyes widening, her cheeks beginning to heat up as she stared at the shirtless man. 

“I am.” He responded, coughing shortly afterward. He hadn’t even noticed how terrible his stomach and head felt, he got some sort of sickness. 

The commander sighed and put a basin beside his feet and climbed up. “Your clothes were making you sweat, which leads you to dehydration, which leads to more sickness.” 

“Oh.” He said softly before leaning his head back, shutting his eyes as he brought his arm up and rested it across his forehead. “How long was I asleep for?”

“Seven hours, give or take,” Makoto said as she dipped a piece of cloth in the water and wrung it out before awkwardly climbing over his legs, placing a knee on either side of him. She leaned forward and took his arm and moved it aside.

He jumped slightly at the sudden touch and looked at her, confusion in his eyes. But more than just confusion, there seemed to be a hint of fear as well. 

Makoto pulled back slightly, putting her palms up. “Relax! I’m just going to wash you off.” She huffed out, waiting for him to relax before she leaned forward and rested the cloth across his forehead before she began to gently pat down his face. She then continued down, wiping it across his arms and torso, trying her absolute hardest not to get too caught up with the scars that decorated his body, but her naturally curious mind always leads to her asking ‘Where does he get all of these? How old is he, anyway?’

Ren had noticed her freeze and he looked at her, noticing how she was practically as still as a statue. “Whatcha thinking about?” He asked.

She let out an audible squeak as she jumped from the suddenness of his voice. She pulled back and climbed off of him, hiding her face from him as she retreated behind the boxes that he was lying beside. She returned the cloth to the basin of water and sighed. “How old are you?”

The question took him back, his eyes widening. “What’s it to you?”

She peered around the box, looking at him, “After seeing you fight, I began to wonder.” 

He let out a quiet ‘Hmph’ before beginning to sit up (much against the commander’s dismay). “I’m sixteen.” 

Her eyes widened, “Y-You’re… sixteen?” She repeated. “I guess I’m the older one, then.” The commander said with a slight grin. 

“And how old are you?” 

“Seventeen.”

“Seventeen and you’re a commander?” He asked, quite shocked, his eyes widening. “And- no offense, but a female as well? I thought the Mementosi was, y’ know…” 

She nodded. “It’s still surreal to me. Nonetheless, I’m doing my duty and I hope I’m doing it well.”

He chuckled weakly, yawning shortly after. “You’re not dead, yet. I’d say that’s doing a good job.” 

She let out a small smile and nodded once more, humming in agreement. “I suppose you’re right.” 

After her response, a sudden tense silence fell over them. Almost as if both of them sensed the impending doom of frontline combat. Ren couldn’t describe what he was feeling- he trusted her, wanted to speak to her, he even found himself attracted to her. But the feeling was so… melancholic. He knew he’d never get her. She was the commander of a Kaithagian army and he was a low life mercenary, who killed for money and had no sense of nobility; an escaped-slave, a scared and fragile sixteen-year-old boy who knew how to swing a sword. 

As for Makoto, the feeling was mutual. She felt like she finally found someone who understood what it meant to be ‘on top’ but still lonely. Everyone should love the best mercenary there is to hire (in her opinion), right? However, the way he spoke, the way he walks, his expressions when engaging in conversations (as little as he did contribute), and what seemed like a lack of self-respect had shown her that he hadn’t received any love for quite some time- and she was the same way. Similar to the best mercenary, everyone should love their commander, right? She keeps them fed, protected, gives them winning strategies, trains them, and leads them to glory. But to the soldiers, she was just another rank who barked orders and sent men to die. Part of her felt guilty for those who fell under her command, but Makoto acknowledged that she couldn’t save everyone. And her attraction to the socially inept, quiet, reserved mercenary would go nowhere. She was the commander of a pristine and posh army while he fought in the dirt and had seen countless battles- those sorts of men want someone who can take them away from the war, from the battle, and not a woman who leads men like him into the battle. Into the bloodbath. 

Suddenly, his voice broke the silence. “Why do you fight, Commander Niijima?” 

She looked over at him, locking eyes with him. He had a curious stare as if he was studying her reaction. “Well, I thought I already told you. I was wrongfully convicted and I was sent here to s-“ 

“I said why do you fight, not why you’re here to fight.” He interrupted, his stare growing more intense as he watched her answer. 

She had never seen him as dead-panned serious as he was now. Even in battle, she could see his flamboyance splayed out amongst the battleground and she knew that had to soak up some of his concentration. But now? All of his concentration was on her. 

“Well… I fight to bring honor to myself and to prove to everyone in Kaithage that I can live up to the Niijima name, just as my sister has.” 

He nodded in silence, his eyes narrowing as he continued his gaze. Finally, he retreated and his face softened. “I see.” He said quietly, using his forearm to rub just above his lip, scrunching his face up as he sniffled. “Stupid cold.” He muttered to himself.

Now Makoto’s curiosity was piqued. “Why do you fight, Amamiya?” She asked, her eyes narrowing. 

“Do you want the short or the long answer?” He responded, raising an eyebrow. 

“Both.”

He sighed and leaned back, resting his head on a bag of something that wasn’t the softest. “No matter what I say, make sure I get it all out. Deal?” 

Makoto looked outside the tent as she heard some chatter, the carts beginning to roll once more. “We’ve got a few hours, approximately.” She turned back to face the sellsword, who was staring at her with an impatient frown. 

“Deal?” He repeated. 

She nodded. “Deal.” 

He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, before taking another one. “Give me my coat.” He said.

Makoto was rather disappointed after his buildup, but she was still tense to know who this ‘Ren Amamiya’ was. She took his coat and tossed it to him, watching him pull it over himself like a blanket, before completely dipping his head underneath it.

He took a deep breath and huffed out a heavy sigh. “Okay… Where to begin…” He mumbled. After a few moments of silence, he coughed and cleared his throat. “Well… I was born in Tok-Yoi as you know, and I lived a rather peaceful life for nine years. My mother was fairly wealthy and my father disappeared when I was only two months, so I never got to know him. I tended to stay insane and play with bamboo sticks and pretend I was a samurai. Of course, I’d help my mother whenever she asked. We’d make food together, we’d eat, we’d walk together, now that I reminisce… We did a lot together.

“Well, that all changed when I was nine. Our village was raided by a neighboring clan. My mother and I tried to hide in our closet in the main room… But I got scared when men burst in and made a cry- My mother tried to stop me by putting her hands over my mouth, but… It was too late…” 

She froze, her eyes widening as began to go on with his story- Hell it sounded like it had hardly begun. But just by the sound of how he delivered that message, he felt the guilt of whatever happened next. 

Ren paused and took another deep breath, this time it was beginning to tremble. “We were… dragged out of the closet and tossed against the ground and that was when my mother called to one of the men. Hachiro… My father.” He gulped, as he began to tremble himself. “It turns out he was a noble soldier for the clan that was attacking and he had been before he came to my mother the first time…” 

Makoto could recognize how he had practically pulled himself into a tight ball underneath the coat, a trembling, tight, little ball of despair. She wanted to reach a hand out and rest it on his shoulder, but that would only startle him and cause more problems. 

**WARNING: BEGINNING**  
Even while a trembling mess, he soldiered on. “Well, then I was held against my will and was forced to watch as my mother was…” He trailed off, gulping audibly once more, a small cry coming out as he began his next sentence. “Raped, beaten, and inevitably pulled outside. I haven’t seen her since. She could be dead or alive, free or enslaved, I don’t know… B-But I wish I did.” He said softly, taking as he paused to wipe his eyes from the salty streams that began to flow down his cheeks.

Makoto sat in silence, staring in horror at the boy. “Y-You were nine when this all happened?” 

Ren nodded, clearing his throat as he began once more. “After that, I was given this brand for disrespecting my father. He told me it was to remember what happens whenever I do and that he’d do much worse if it ever happened again.” 

She stared at him. “D-Did anything worse happen?” 

“So…. So much worse!” He cried out, his trembling beginning to grow uncontrollable as his breathing began to grow labored and short. 

Makoto quickly rushed to him, crawling up to Ren (who was now sheltered snuggly between two supply boxes.) “Amamiya, take a breath…” She said, beginning to panic. _‘What the hell do I say!?’_ While her emotions had an answer to that, her logistical and analytical side had combatted that answer with doubt and worry. However, as she heard another one of her cries, her analytical side had completely been silenced. “Amamiya, it’s okay, I’ve got you.” She said, placing her hand on his shoulder, the other one where she assumed was the side of his face. “I’ve got you, just relax.” 

His labored breathing grew more intense as he was suddenly touched, but her words had begun to calm him down. His breathing had been normalized. “R-Right… Where was I?”

“You were just… branded.” She said softly as she guided the ball of grief closer towards her and brought him into her arms, where he was now pressing his head against her shoulder, leaning most of his weight onto her.

“R-Right!” He said, taking a deep breath. “W-When I got back to… t-the military outpost my f-father was stationed at, I was taken to the c-captain’s quarters and…” He was cut off by his own cry. “I couldn’t do anything! I was just a little kid! A weak, stupid little kid who couldn’t fight back as he held me down, damnit!” He said, his voice like a mouse’s squeak. “I couldn’t do anything!” He cried out one more time.

Makoto’s widened eyes remained just as wide as she was struck with disbelief. She began to repeat his words in her head. _‘He couldn’t do anything..? He was… held down? No… No way.’_ She stared at him as he was now clinging onto her torso. 

**WARNING: END**

“I-I was t-then… raised to f-fight… For four years. Until I-I fled and came to Mementos.” He said quietly as his trembling began to slowly dissipate. “A-And I fight because… It’s all I can do to get my a-anger out. I’m going to kill him…” He finally muttered out his answer to her question. 

Makoto sat in disbelief, awkwardly returning the hug to the boy who practically spilled his heart out to her. So many of her questions had just been answered from his story alone. “So that’s why you were so relentless when that man tried to…” She trailed off, she didn’t need to say it. It made her uncomfortable (which is an understatement) as a whole and she couldn’t imagine how terrible it would be for him to talk about that situation. 

She felt a subtle nod come from him and she sighed softly. “Amamiya… I…” She couldn’t say anything. No amount of words could make anyone feel better after what he had just discussed. 

“T-Thank you, for letting me talk.” He mumbled quietly, almost completely inaudible to her. 

“What was that?” She asked, keeping her voice as gentle as possible. The last thing she wanted to put Ren through was any more feelings of distress 

“N-Nothing.”

Makoto wasn’t going to push any further. “You’re sitting this next battle out.” She said all the while keeping her tone gentle but making sure her words packed a punch. And much to Makoto’s surprise, there seemed to be no resilience from the mercenary. 

“I’m so tired...” He said quietly. “I’m so damn tired.” He repeated, taking a deep breath. 

Makoto nodded and smiled slightly. “Get sleep, I need you healthy as soon as possible.” 

Ren nodded again and pulled away from her, lying back down where he previously was lying down. “Yes, Commander.” He huffed out. 

Makoto took a deep breath and looked out the back of the wagon, rubbing her eyes with the palms of her hands as she slowly began to piece the puzzle of Ren Amamiya together. Why he hated being touched, why he was so violent with Junya Kaneshiro, why he had the brand, why he was so distant, why he was a lone sellsword and tried to push people away; it was all to protect himself and those around him. 

_‘Selfless.’_ She thought to herself as she turned back to look at Ren, who was now fast asleep. _‘Selfless and tortured.’_


	6. The Duel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Makoto’s forces are met with a Doldrian raiding regiment, under the command of Takahukata, one of the most renowned generals of the Doldrian army.

It was typical courtesy in a battle for both commanders to meet in the middle of the battlefield before engaging in combat. 

Makoto dismounted her steed and paced towards the opposing commander, meeting with him, standing just a foot away from him. A tense silence fell over the entire battlefield as the two held their silent stares. Makoto had her helmet pressed between her side and her bicep, while her other hand rested firmly on her hip as she craned her neck to look up at the grizzly warrior who stood before her. 

“General Niijima, the princess of Fort Mona.” He said with a hoarse and deep voice. Doldrians had a typical way of speaking, similar to the accent of the residents of Tok-Yoi. However, it was much more guttural and way less posh. 

“Chief Takahukata.” Makoto responded sharply.

The chief grinned and turned around to face his army, who happened to be much, _much_ larger than Makoto’s, then returned his stare to Makoto.

“Tell me, General Niijima. Do you know of our way of battle in Doldrey?” 

————

Ren shot awake from his bed, sweat dripping down his forehead. He must have passed out again into sleep, what did he do in his last time of conscious? The sellsword hardly remembered, and it wasn’t like he needed to. He hastily scrambled to his gear in the corner of the stopped wagon, beginning to equip himself.

_‘She doesn’t know… Doldrians will always offer to battle between their commanders for the total outcome of the fight… She’s too naive, she’ll fall for it… She has no one stronger than me who can fight.’_ He thought to himself as he finally got all of his armor on, grabbing his sword and sheathing it over his back.

Ren stumbled out of the back of the cart, nearly falling to the ground as he landed. He unsheathed his sword immediately and used it as a walking cane as he began to head off towards the cheering that began to erupt from the East. 

Once he arrived, he had witnessed what he feared most. Makoto was battling… Takahukata?! 

His eyes widened as he stared at her draw her sword, watching the giant of a man draw out his giant war-axe and swing it around. Ren watched Makoto bow first and hold it until Takahukata had returned the bow.

_‘Wait… She knows? She knew this duel would come willingly?’_

———

“Tell me, General Niijima. Do you know of our way of battle in Doldrey?” 

“Doldrians take art in duels. The truest match of strength.” Makoto continued, holding her icy stare with the man. “The opposing commander may either choose to wager the full battle on themselves, or disagree to the terms and trust in their soldiers to fight. If the opposing commander wins, then the Doldrian soldiers have no choice but to surrender their weapons, commit suicide with weapon in hand, or be executed for any attempts to break those two rules.” 

The chieftain chuckled and put a hand to his stubbled chin. “I’m impressed with your knowledge, General.” He said gruffly. “And what do you decide?” 

“If I can save the lives of my men, I will take this fight.” She said simply, taking a few steps back and putting her helmet on over her head. 

Takahukata grinned and turned around, facing his warriors as he threw his hands in the air. “Duel it shall be!” He said with a massive smile, before turning around to see the general unsheathe her sword, which he responded to by pulling his axe from off his back. 

He returned her bow and stood back up straight, getting into a ready position.

Makoto took a deep breath as she held up her sword in a stable hanging right guard as she stared at the man, the two of them walking in circles in the dust. _‘Now is no time to falter, Makoto. Bring honor to the Niijima name… Make your father proud.’_

Silence swept over the field. 

The two continued their circling, keeping everyone in anticipation for the next move. By appearances, it seemed like the classic fight of David and Goliath, one where it’s a battle of speed and dexterity verses raw strength. 

However, Ren knew very well otherwise. He didn’t know anything about Makoto’s fighting style, hell to him, she was just another Kaithaginian commander. But he had heard countless stories of Takahukata, the slayer of Doldrey. The man who had wiped armies with his forces.

He balanced himself on his sword as there was nothing that could stop the duel now. His eyes trailed over the two of them, watching as they both circled, his eyes focusing on both of their feet, suddenly, Takahukata’s foot slid forward and a quick axe swing was sent.

Makoto responded to the axe swing, ducking underneath, and suddenly— everything exploded in energy. The two began to trade blow for blow, neither one being able to land a single hit one the other as they both parried, dodged and blocked one another’s hits. 

She continued to weave effortlessly around his attacks as his swings were wide side-slashes. She clenched her teeth as he brought down a crushing blow from the top, but her instincts allowed her to barely block the blow with the blade of her sword. She spun, putting her back to the man and swung her sword forward, the balde catching a hook in the axe and sending it flying across the field.

_‘He’s disarmed, keep cool and play it smart… Wear him down until he’s too exhausted to fight.’_ She mentally coached herself before letting out a loud yell as she turned and placed her boot against the brute’s chest, kicking him back.

Takahukata let out a loud growl as he pulled out a smaller knife from a sheath that was hooked on the back of his belt. 

Makoto kept her composure calm and held her sword back in her comfortable hanging-right position as she slowly approached him, her eyes staying locked on his eyes. 

Once more, the cheers of the crowd that had been drowned out by Makoto’s concentration had picked back up. She could hear cheers between both her army and Takahukata’s clan. It was deafening.

As the two circled, Makoto’s eyes found what looked like Ren in her peripheral vision. He looked concerned. 

In that split second moment, Takahukata attacked. He swung his blade with a loud growl and as Makoto snapped back into the fight, she went to parry the attack, but now the chieftain was open to his other hand, which grabbed tightly onto her gauntlets, rendering her sword useless. Makoto’s eyes widened as she saw his blade aiming straight for her side.

She placed both of her legs on his core and released her sword, kicking herself off of him, sending her sliding across the ground. She quickly rolled back up to her feet, preparing her fists as he charged straight at her, his knife in both hands.

Makoto grabbed onto both of his forearms, holding his blade from reaching her stomach, but she couldn’t hold forever. She grit her teeth. This was the final chance at exposing him. 

She released the tension of her arms, allowing Takahukata’s momentum to propel him forward.

Makoto grunted in pain as she clenched her teeth, but acted quickly and lowered her fist and punched directly up into the chieftain’s elbow, completely hyperextending it. 

The man growled in pain and tried to jam the blade further into her, but the commander was much too quick. She quickly grabbed her own dagger from her thigh, bringing it up and jamming it directly into the side of his neck, removing it shortly after and let out a loud cry as she shoved him back, watching him fall onto his back. 

The blissful silence returned and Makoto’s world began to grow dark. The last thing she heard was cheering and a loud cry of...

_“Makoto!”_

———

Ren watched her take the blade and his eyes widened. _‘She let him stab her just so she could get the upper-hand…’_ He thought to himself. 

And just like that, the fight was over. Everyone fell quiet. But after a few seconds of realization, everyone began to cheer and cry out in victory. 

Ren’s eyes widened as he saw her stance grow weaker and he dropped his sword, sprinting and shoving through the crowd towards her. “Makoto!” He screamed out as he ran through the open field.

———

Makoto’s eyes opened and she blinked a few times, groaning in pain as her hand shot to her stomach, feeling the rough feeling of bandages wrapped around her stomach. 

She took a deep breath, it hurt, it hurt a lot. She wheezed out a painful sigh and whimpered slightly before resting the back of her hand on her forehead, wiping away the sweat. Why was she so damn hot? Where was she? Why was it so warm? 

She laid her hand back down across her chest and looked around, noticing the interiors of a what looked like a cabin. She turned her head towards the sound of a crackling fire, seeing the flames dance within a stone fireplace. 

She huffed out a sigh and could see a small window across the room, noticing small droplets land all across the window. It was pouring outside. _‘Where the hell am I?’_ She thought, forcing herself to sit up. 

She hissed in pain and returned her hand to where she was stabbed and frowned. “I must’ve gotten too caught up in the battle.” She muttered to herself before hearing a loud crack of lightning, which made her jump and yelp loudly, which sent pain through her whole stomach. She grit her teeth and sighed softly. _“It’s just lightning. Just lightning. Just lightning.”_ She muttered softly 

She heard the door creak open and her head shot over, noticing a taller lithe figure in an all black robe, soaking wet. It was him.

The Mercenary.

She looked at him and blinked a few times before he simply asked her, “Oh, you’re awake?” 

Part of her was insulted by the fact that he didn’t seem to care, but she inferred that he was guarding wherever she was. “Y-Yes, I am.” She said.

“May you please pull your blanket further up. I did not exactly wish to see you bare.” He said with a sigh as he walked across the room, his soaking wet boots making loud clomps with each step as he approached the fire and kneeled in front of it. He slipped his hood off of his head, his black hair covering any emotion that was sprawled across his face.

“What?!” She cried out before looking down, noticing she wasn’t even wearing anything to cover her. She quickly grabbed the edge of the blanket and pulled it over her, draping each corner over her shoulders. 

She could hear the faint sound of him snicker, which only made her want to punch him more. “So… Where are we?” She asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Your Lieutenant brought us to an abandoned village he recognized that was just a few days away from the battlefield.” He said coldly. 

“Yusuke…” She mumbled before realizing, “Wait! A few days- How long have I been asleep!?” She asked, straining herself due to shock, which immediately made her clench her teeth in pain. 

“Don’t yell. It’ll only hurt you more.” He muttered. 

“How long was I out?” She repeated. 

“Not long.” 

“How long!?” She asked once more.

“A week.” He finally responded. “You barely survived…” He muttered quietly as he stood up.

“I’ve been out for a week!?” She cried out in response, groaning in pain. 

“Goddamnit, General Niijima!” He yelled out as he turned towards her. “Do you understand how reckless you were!? Do you understand how close you were to dying!? You’re still barely grabbing onto life and you keep straining your body!” Ren’s voice boomed as he stared at her.

Eyes are the windows to one’s soul.

And Ren’s soul was angry, it was horrified, it was sad, it was concerned.

Makoto’s eyes widened as she stared at him, “I…” 

He was visibly trembling now. “General Niijima. You have an army to command! You cannot be risking your life in those stupid Doldrian customs!” He paused. “You… can’t die!” He finally said, his voice cracking slightly.

She wanted to argue, she opened her mouth as if she were about to yell in response. But he was right. She was reckless, but she won, right? That’s all that mattered.

Hell, the fight to her was a blur, she barely remembered any of it as she reminisced. She remembered taking the knife and using it to her advantage, but everything before or past that were hazy. 

Another loud crack of lightning lit the room a bright white, which was followed by a booming thunder that shook the cabin. 

Makoto cried out and let out a loud grunt in pain. “Nnnng… God damn this… wound.” She mumbled.

Ren looked at her, his expression softening. _‘What scared her?’_

Again, another crack lit the room up, followed by another loud and rumbling boom which shook the whole room. 

Makoto yelped out again. “Lay beside me, Amamiya!” She barked out, her voice trembling in fear.

“I-I beg your pardon?” He asked, raising an eyebrow as his body recoiled back from the suddenness of her sentence. “I don’t believe we know each other that well, General Niij-“ 

“Shut up! It’s an order!” She barked out again.

“But I am soaking wet, General.” 

“I don’t care!” She whined.

Ren sighed and walked over, pulling his sheath off of his back, resting it against the wall. He slid his coat off of him and dropped it to the ground, he then got to work on his armor, stripping it off of him and dropping it down as well. 

_**CRAAAAAACK!** _

Makoto’s loud cry only encouraged Ren to strip his wet clothing off even faster, he kneeled down and began to undo his shin guards, untying them and letting them fall to the floor, his boots soon following. Now he was left in his somewhat dry torn-up and sleeveless undershirt and his torn up black pants. He looked at the General, who was staring at him with her bottom lip being nibbled at by her top teeth. “What’re you staring at?” He asked, his eyes narrowing. 

Makoto frowned and turned her head and slid aside in the small cot, trying her best to offer him a blanket and keep herself. Ren huffed out a sigh and slipped under the cotton blanket, feeling the General’s arms immediately clutch around his torso as she hugged against his side. 

Ren’s eyes widened as he began to see visions of _that_ captain, the way her hands and fingers ran across his sides, his breathing grew labored as he began to spiral back into the flashback until he heard a soft voice bring him back to the present.

“It’s okay, Ren.” She said quietly.

_‘Did she know?’_ He thought to himself as he looked over at her.

“I won’t do anything to you…” She mumbled quietly.

Ren rolled onto his side, enveloping her into his arms as he pulled her close against him. (All while being gentle since she was still wounded.) 

_**CRAAACK!** _

Makoto let out a quiet whimper at the lightning and she found herself clutching tighter onto Ren, that is until she felt his hand cup her chin and pull it up so she was facing him, she stared at him, looking at his dull gray eyes through his messy and wet black locks. 

Ren inched forward and hitched his breath as he decided to make the decision. He pressed his lips against hers, before pulling away quickly to see her reaction. 

Makoto’s eyes were wide and her face grew darker as she stared at him, her mouth agape as she got lost in his sad and tired stare.

While she found herself being constantly insulted by this mercenary, or she found herself wanting to kill him sometimes, or while his appearance had completely changed her world and she was here now lying in bed after nearly dying, Makoto found herself believing that she had found her place in this boy’s heart. 

And with that, she pushed forward and returned the gentle peck. “Ren, I-“ 

“Shh…” He said quietly, “You need rest…” He said quietly. 

Makoto nodded. She needed rest. She buried her face in his chest and closed her eyes, slipping out of conscious and into the black abyss that was sleep.

**Author's Note:**

> **Things to Know:**
> 
> **Kingdom of Kaithage:** The Royal Kingdom in the Northeast section of Mementos, republic. Colors: Blue, White, and Gold.  
>  **Doldrian Empire:** An Empire built on destruction and savagery, dictatorship. Colors: Tan, Orange, and Brown.  
>  **Mementos:** Main-Land Continent currently being fought over by the Kaithaginians and Doldrians. (Based off of 1600's Germany and France)  
>  **Tok-Yoi:** Smaller island continent off to the east of Mementos. (Based off of 1500's Japan and China) 
> 
> **Armor Appearances:**
> 
> **Ren Amamiya:** For Ren, think of something similar to Wolf from Fromsoftware's _Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice,_ except decorated in all black cloth with metal plating beneath the cloth to provide extra armor.  
>  **Makoto Niijima:** For Makoto, try to imagine your typical fantasia-styled knight armor, decorated with engravings and feathers, the full armor set being a polished silver with blue lining amongst the fur that wraps around each individual piece of armor. For her helmet, think of a much more refined version of Goblin Slayer's helmet.  
>  **Ryuji Sakamoto:** For Ryuji, imagine your typical MMO tank, bulky and large plate armor with a huge fur cloak along the backside.  
>  **Kai Sugimoto:** For Kai, his armor is decorated in all silver armor, with a simple blue crown painted on each of his shoulder-pads with golden trimming his full plate armor. For him, think of Warden from Ubisoft's _For Honor_  
>  **Yusuke Kitagawa:** For Yusuke, for lack of better words, his armor matches Serpico's armor from Kentaro Miura's _Berserk_  
>   
>   
>  _ **More will be added periodically throughout the series**_  
>   
>   
> 


End file.
